Sunday, March 26, 2017

Poll: Millennials of color believe Trump presidency is illegitimate

Young people are leading many of the protests against Donald Trump and his policies.

AMERICA'S YOUNG PEOPLE generally don't like or trust No. 45, Donald Trump. That distrust and dislike is even greater among young people of color.

A majority of young adults, 57 percent, see Trump's presidency as illegitimate, including about three-quarters of blacks and large majorities of Asians and Latinos, according to a poll conducted by GenForward poll.

GenForward is a poll of adults age 18 to 30 conducted by the Black Youth Project at the University of Chicago with The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.

The findings about the opinions of Millennials, an increasingly diverse generation, could spell trouble for the Republican Party down the line. By around 2020, half of the nation's children will be part of a minority race or ethnic group, the Census Bureau projects. Non-Hispanic whites are expected to be a minority by 2044.

The distrust and dislike for the policies of this president has manifested into activism among young people, who use social media, their preferred medium of communication, to successfully organize and respond quickly to every policy misstep taken by Trump, such as the failed attempts to install a Muslim ban and to repeal Obamacare.

Other highlights of the poll:

Majorities of young adults in each racial and ethnic group disapprove of President Trump’s performance in office.

Majorities of young adults in each racial and ethnic group also think that the country today is off on the wrong track, not headed in the right direction.

Young adults express considerable concern about Donald Trump’s relations with Russia. Young people of color are especially worried. For example, 54 percent of Asian/Americans, 53 percent of Latino/as, and 49 percent of African Americans believe that the 2016 election was hampered by the Russians. Only 39 percent of whites share this view.

Young people differ across race and ethnicity in whether they believe Donald Trump is a legitimate president. While a majority of whites (53 percent) views Donald Trump as a legitimate president, considerably smaller proportions of African Americans (25 percent , Asian/Americans (36 percent), and Latino/as (28 percent) share this belief— instead, most say Trump is not a legitimate president.

Large numbers of Millennials report having been politically active during the first 50 days of the Trump administrations. Political engagement has taken place largely online and in opposition to—rather than in support of—President Trump. For example, most contacts with public officials (61 percent) among African Americans, 65 percent of Asian/Americans, 59 percent of Latino/as, and 62 percent of whites) have been to express opposition to President Trump and his policies.

There continue to be large differences across race and ethnicity in perceptions about the most important problem in America. For example, young people of color list racism as one of the three most important problems in the country, but this issue is not one of the top three issues for young whites.

Health care and immigration are among the other top issues listed by Millennials, suggesting a response to Trump’s current policy agenda.